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EU leaders pledge to cooperate more closely on defence
The 27 leaders of the European Union want to sign off on a new shared defence strategy early next year, part of a push to improve security cooperation, European Council President Charles Michel said. "We want to increase defence investment, and we want to enhance civilian and military capabilities and operational readiness," Michel told the press after a leaders' videoconference on Friday. The EU has been trying to coordinate more closely on security matters in recent years, for example with plans to jointly fund defence development projects. The overarching aim is greater strategic autonomy, ...
DPA
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EU eyes more 'responsibility' for its own security
Brussels (AFP) - EU leaders agreed Friday that the bloc should take more responsibility for its own security, insisting Brussels needs to be a strong partner for NATO and the United States. Debate has raged for decades over what role Brussels should play on defence, and individual nations have often been reluctant to agree moves to integrate military capabilities. "We want to act more strategically, to defend our interests and to promote our values," European Council President Charles Michel tweeted after a video summit. "We need to increase our ability to act autonomously and strengthen our...
AFP
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EU leaders pledge to cooperate more closely on defence
The 27 leaders of the European Union want to sign off a new shared defence strategy early next year as part of a push to improve security cooperation, European Council President Charles Michel said. "We want to increase defence investment, and we want to enhance civilian and military capabilities and operational readiness," Michel told the press after a leaders' videoconference on Friday. The EU has been trying to coordinate more closely on security matters in recent years, for example with plans to jointly fund defence development projects. The overarching aim is greater strategic autonomy, a...
DPA
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EU leaders discuss security cooperation with NATO chief
The 27 leaders of the European Union shifted their focus to defence and security issues on Friday when regrouping for a second day of online talks. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also joined the videoconference for a discussion on cooperation between the bloc and the defence alliance. "The EU efforts are going hand in hand with the military efforts across the continent," he said before heading into the talks. "For NATO, the main task during this pandemic has been to make sure that a health crisis doesn't turn into a security crisis," he said, "because the threats we are [sic] faced wi...
DPA
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EU leaders debate push to boost defences
Brussels (AFP) - EU leaders debated efforts aimed at bolstering the bloc's ability to tackle security threats Friday, as Brussels looks to convince sceptics over its drive for a more assertive Europe. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg joined the video summit to talk up cooperation in the face of worries from some member states that the EU's push could undermine the US-backed alliance at a time new President Joe Biden is looking to rebuild it. "I'm totally convinced that this new Biden administration offers a unique opportunity to renew the strong alliance between Europe and the United S...
AFP
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EU wants Covid-19 vaccine passports in time for peak tourist season
The European Union wants to develop a coronavirus vaccine certificate that could be a vital lifeline for the tourist season, but drawing up the system will require at least three months, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said. On top of a great deal of technical work, "there are still a number of open political questions," the EU executive chief told reporters following a videoconference on Thursday. EU governments are still in debate with each other and domestically about whether being inoculated against Covid-19 should grant certificate-holders perks like travel, meals out o...
DPA
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Austria's Kurz sees 'broad European support' for virus certificate
Many EU countries back a certificate that would offer benefits for people who have been vaccinated, tested or who have recovered from Covid-19, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said after talks among the bloc's leaders. "There is broad European support for the idea of a green pass," he said in a written statement. Such a mobile phone certificate would help create a "safety net" that would give some freedom back to people even before the end of the pandemic. "Now the priority is to implement the green pass as quickly as possible," said Kurz.
DPA
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Merkel: Vaccine certificate will take 3 months to create
It will take around three months to create a Covid-19 vaccination certificate, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, following a virtual meeting with her 26 EU counterparts. The European Commission had already done some preliminary technical work, but it would take another three months to develop such a digital certificate, she said. This could build the basis for the travel of third country nationals to the bloc, she said. And while the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic should be over by summer, she said, inoculations might have to continue for much longer because of emerging mutations. Countrie...
DPA
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Austria's Kurz predicts national virus passports if EU cannot agree
If the European Union cannot agree on benefits for people who are vaccinated, tested or immune from a coronavirus infection, Austria and like-minded countries will soon go ahead with such measures, Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said. "I think that this project has to be implemented in spring - if not in all of Europe, we will have to do it on a national level, and with agreements with other countries that have similar policies," he told a press conference ahead of talks among the bloc's 27 leaders. He stressed that his planned "digital green passport" on people's mobile phones could offer...
DPA
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Venezuela gives EU ambassador 72 hours to leave the country
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro's government has declared the EU's ambassador in Caracas "persona non grata" and has given her 72 hours to get out of the country. Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza told TV broadcaster VTV that Isabel Brilhante Pedrosa had been handed a statement to that effect in response to the extension of EU sanctions on Maduro's supporters. In an "agreement on rejection" of the sanctions, Venezuela's new parliament had urged Maduro to pursue the expulsion of the bloc's ambassador earlier on Wednesday. It also said the agreement on the operation of the EU office in Caracas ...
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